America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin Sales Rise

The United States Mint saw some increased interest in their America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coins during the month of October. Sales across the three available designs reached 6,200 coins, more than double the amount sold in the previous month. Despite the increase, sales still remain extremely low when compared earlier monthly totals or American Silver Eagle sales.

The America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin Program was authorized by Congress to accompany the series of circulating quarter dollars. Each coin is struck in five troy ounces of .999 silver and has a diameter of 3 inches. Five different designs are available per year, which may only be issued during the year of release for the corresponding quarter dollar. The bullion coins are distributed through the United States Mint’s authorized purchaser network.

The first five designs of the series were issued in December 2010, with only 33,000 of each available. This year’s designs have been available at an initial quantity of 126,700 per design. The first two design managed to quickly sell out of this amount, while the subsequent designs have experienced slower sales.

During October 2011, the Olympic National Park design sold 1,000 coins, the Vicksburg National Military Park design sold 2,000 coins, and the Chickasaw National Park design sold 3,200 coins. Year to date sales totals for the last two designs remain below the total sales levels of the 2010-dated releases.

2011 America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coin Sales

Oct 2011

YTD 2011

Gettysburg 5 oz.

0

126,700

Glacier 5 oz.

0

126,700

Olympic 5 oz.

1,000

82,700

Vicksburg 5 oz.

2,000

31,600

Chickasaw 5 oz.

3,200

22,300

Total

6,200

390,000

Across all five of the 2011 designs, the US Mint has sold 390,000 of the America the Beautiful Silver Bullion Coins, accounting for 1,950,000 troy ounces of silver. The traditional one ounce American Silver Eagle bullion coins have sold 36,475,500 coins through the end of October.

Related posts:

Coin Update is not a retail website. If you wish to buy a coin or banknote, you should contact a reputable dealer. One of our sponsors (see ads at right and top of page) may also have what you’re looking for, so be sure to check out their websites.

Per policy, we do not advise on the value, authenticity, or rarity of readers’ coins and banknotes. For this kind of assistance, you should contact a reputable dealer, preferably one who’s certified by the American Numismatic Association and/or the Professional Numismatists Guild.

Vulgar and/or abusive comments will not be tolerated. Nor will trolls.

Allegations of fraudulent or criminal activity against a named party, when said activity has not been proven in a court of law, will be removed.

Comments

I think I understand the spike in numismatic sales, but the spike in sales for the bullion AtBs is confusing to me, especially with the last one for 2011 having been released quite some time ago. Holiday shopping? Investors starting to notice the low premiums?

Even though it is more than a 100% increase it is still a pretty small number.

Nevertheless, the increase might be a lagging impact of the drop in silver prices at the end of September. The sales numbers reflect sales from the US Mint to authorized purchasers, not sales to the eventual end buyer.

I personally bought some ATB bullion coins at the end of September to take advantage of the decline in metals prices. I have the feeling others did so as well.

APs could have fulfilled these orders from existing inventory, and then placed new orders with the Mint in October to restock their inventory or even to fulfill the orders they accepted. The APs are presumably hedged against price fluctuations so their purchases aren’t motivated by price movement, but just to restock or fulfill orders.

Yep, I bought a full set (my 2nd) at the beginning of October due to the sharp dip in PM prices. Well under $900 for the set.

Will be interesting if the Mint stops selling the three remaining designs to the APs December 31st or extend it through the month of January like they do for the last run of prior year dated silver eagles? If Vicksburg & Chickasaw add a few thousand in sales to the APs during the last two calendar months, and sales must stop Dec. 31st according to the specifics of the coinage law, then it’s reasonable to assume that Vicksburg will barely top the 2010 bullion mintage and Chickasaw well under it, making them potentially excellent buys. Might be a moot point if nobody cares to collect these at all.

If I recall correctly, the first two were issued on April 25th, and last less than 3 months later on July 18th, an extraordinarily tight spacing on an infant series that has yet to capture either the investing or collecting public, or gain any kind of foothold due to its unusual specifications. If all the 2011 coins were minted, that means a staggering 625K coins/3M+ oz of silver to be foisted on the market

Categories

More Recent Articles

The Istituto Poligrafico Zecca della Stato (IPZS) have released (5th March) their 2018 Brilliant Uncirculated Set which will include 10 coins, all eight definitive circulating coins from one cent to two euros. The set also includes the commemorative five-euro silver coin which celebrates the 70th anniversary of the proclamation of the Italian Republic as well […]

Washington — The United States Mint will begin accepting orders for collectible bags and rolls of 2018 Kennedy Half Dollar coins on March 20 at noon Eastern Time (ET). Available product options and their prices are as follows: PRODUCT CODE PRODUCT OPTION MINT MARK PRICE 18KA 200-Coin Bag P and D $139.95 18KB Two-Roll Set […]

The first Netherlands commemorative coin of 2018 is dedicated to the city of Leeuwarden, designated as the European Culture Capital for 2018. The city is the capital of the province of Friesland and is a 1.5-hour drive north of Amsterdam. Much of the province is below sea level and is known for huge protective dikes, […]

I enjoy modern coins and often order new items of interest from the Mint. Others I buy in the marketplace. A few years ago I decided to build a full set of modern dollars from the 1971 Eisenhower to date. I was present at the creation of the Ike motif, so to speak. Chief Engraver […]

The following are the complete set of proposed designs that were sent to the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) to review for the 2019 American Legion coins during their Tuesday, March 13 meeting. Let us know which designs you would choose for each coin face and denomination in the comments below! Gold Five Dollar Obverse […]

Classic Hungarian Gold Coin Recreated on Modern Legal Tender The only gold coin Hungary will issue in 2018 reaches back seven centuries, to the gold guldens (or florins) of King Albert for its inspiration. Albert of Habsburg (the Magnanimous), a descendant of King Bela IV, was crowned king of Hungary on December 18, 1437, after […]

Washington — The United States Mint announced an update to its Numismatic Customer Return Policy to address the issue of excessive returns. For many years, the United States Mint has been pleased to offer customers the option of returning any Mint product for exchange or refund within seven days of purchase for any reason and […]

What comes to mind when you think of the American Legion? My thoughts go to my family and World War II. Many of my uncles served in the Army and Navy during the war, in places far distant from their homes in central New York. While they were in Europe and on the high seas, […]

The following are descriptions of the artist submissions which won the most votes from Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee (CCAC) members for the gold, silver, and clad versions (obverse and reverse) of the upcoming American Legion coins: Gold Obverse AL-G-O-03 commemorates the inception of the American Legion and its mission to serve America and its war […]

(Newport Beach, California) — The Professional Coin Grading Service (PCGS) is making a donation on behalf of coin collectors and dealers to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF). PCGS created a special program it calls “Submissions for a Cure” that offers special pink labels and pink gaskets created specifically for the U.S. Mint’s Breast Cancer […]